John 14:1-31
Jesus Comforts His Disciples
1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”
9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me.The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
22 Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
28 “You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. 30 I will not say much more to you, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold over me, 31 but he comes so that the world may learn that I love the Father and do exactly what my Father has commanded me.
“Come now; let us leave.
John 20:19-29
Jesus Appears To His Disciples
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Richard Dawkins, the atheist and author has said, "Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence...Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence."...
Some people might believe that one's faith is blind...One might believe that I have a blind faith for believing in Jesus...And I do personally think that having a consistent mature faith is hard for most people...But I also think that there are a few people who have a natural belief in Jesus, and that their faith comes easy...And I also believe most people have lapses in their faith or have times when their faith is weaker than at other times...I know I do...And doubt causes much of this...And I think the evil one is trying to weaken our focus and our faith in Jesus as we live each day...We can and do get easily distracted from our faith, or at least I do...Even those who were with Jesus everyday and regularly with Him during His minister had their own doubts...And this was even after Jesus had died and resurrected He appeared to His Disciples...Jesus had told the Eleven to go to Galilee to a mountain, and meet Him after His death...St. Matthew writes that the Eleven went to the mountain where Jesus told them to go, "When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted."...But the Disciples who doubted did not have this blind faith that some non-believers talks about...Seeing a Dead Man come back to life would make you think He is Someone Special or at least make you think something about Him...
So I think it very interesting to watch and follow the faith of the Twelve Disciples as we read through the gospels...I once thought since Jesus had hand picked His Twelve Disciples, each of them would quickly and immediately have a deep and mature faith in Him...But this was not the case...And it is hard to really know, which of the Twelve actually believed in Jesus and which ones do not, with a complete and mature faith...It is hard to know when their faith is and was strong and when it might have weakened as they walked and heard Him teach about God, and watch Him do His miracles...
Two of Jesus Disciples were Philip and Thomas ...They have been with their Teacher for three years and He is about to be arrested and crucified in the upcoming hours...And instead of His Disciples and friends of the last three years helping comfort and be soothing Him on His upcoming death and tragedy, Jesus is comforting them...Now most will say that the Twelve did not know He was going to be quickly arrested and crucified, but He has talked about His upcoming peril to them...And we see after all this time that Philip's faith and belief in Jesus, it is not a blind faith...After three years with Jesus and right before His death, Philip wants more proof after being with Him for such a long time...Imagine that, Philip has been with Jesus day in and day out and is now asking Him to show us the Father and that will be enough for us and him to believe in Him...Jesus answered: "Don’t you know Me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?...Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father...How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?...Don’t you believe that I AM in the Father, and that the Father is in Me?...The words I say to you I do not speak on My Own authority...Rather, it is the Father, living in Me, who is doing His work...Believe Me when I say that I AM in the Father and the Father is in Me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves...Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in Me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I AM going to the Father...And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son...You may ask Me for anything in My name, and I will do it."...
Then after Jesus' death, He appears to His Disciples...He has risen from His death...But Thomas just happened to be gone when Jesus appeared to the other Ten Disciples...And Thomas tells the Ten, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”...
So Philip and Thomas did not believe Jesus was the Messiah or believe in Him being Divine at these times...They wanted faith with evidence...They did not want this blind faith stuff...And Philip told Jesus this, and Thomas told the other Disciples, basically the same thing...They would not believe with a blind faith...And Jesus did not tell Philip look at Me and just believe...No, He explained to Him about His Father and how close Him and His Father are, and if you can't believe that, then believe in Me with the miracles that I have done...Jesus was telling Philip that the three years of miracles, and these many miracles that he had seen was physical evidence for believing in Him (and not blind faith), as well as Him telling him about the intangible and things he couldn't see, like the relationship Jesus has with God, His Father...
Now Thomas was told by Jesus to stop doubting and believe...But this was told after something...This was told by Jesus after He met with His Disciples and Thomas was then with them...Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”...Then He first said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see My hands...Reach out your hand and put it into My side."...Then Jesus said, "Stop doubting and believe."...Only after Thomas was given physical evidence did Jesus say stop doubting and believe...And Thomas did...Thomas physically saw and touched His Master's wounds...Thomas said to Jesus, “My LORD and my God!”...Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”...
So all His Disciples did not have this blind faith...They wanted physical evidence from Jesus and He gave it to them...Today, we do not have the physical Jesus...He has given us the Holy Spirit...Our faith must come from the Disciples and the New Testament or from others who believe and give us testimony...We cannot see Jesus and touch Him as Philip and Thomas did...But that does not make our faith blind...Maybe it is like you are on a jury after and a few years have passed before the trial date has come up...Now you must take the testimony and the information you have been given to discover the Truth...